Members of SABA include lawyers that self-identify as South Asian or are of South Asian origin, and lawyers that advocate on issues of relevance to the South Asian community. Our membership is dynamic, ever-expanding and includes lawyers from large and small law firms, sole practitioners, government agencies and departments, non-profit organizations, and corporations. Members of the judiciary, aca
demics and law students also form an integral part of SABA. SABA-Toronto was created in 2005 by a small group of volunteers. In the years since its inception, SABA’s membership and activities have grown exponentially. Our current activities include advocating for greater South Asian representation in the judiciary, interacting with the Law Society of Upper Canada on the licensing and accreditation process in Ontario, membership on the Equity Advisory Group of the Law Society, interacting with, mentoring and promoting law students in Ontario’s law schools, promoting the cause of South Asian legal professionals in positions of responsibility and involving ourselves with the provincial bar association and corporations to promote the needs of our members. We serve as a networking forum, an advocacy group and an employment resource. We promote diversity, employment opportunities and where appropriate, social reform. We have also funded a bursary at the University of Western Ontario School of Law. SABA recognizes the achievements of South Asian members of the legal community through its Annual Awards, presented each year at its Annual Gala. Awards are presented in the categories of Lifetime Achievement, Male and Female, and Young Practitioner. The SABA awards are extremely successful and attracts numerous nominations for each category. SABA also holds a number of events throughout the course of the year other than the Annual Gala and Awards. These include the popular “pub night”, an event that allows our members to interact and network in an informal atmosphere, events designed for law students, social forums, and networking opportunities.
